Wolfgang and Nadine
by Mokichan2
Summary: After a bizarre football mishap, Nadine feels obligated to help an injured Wolfgang. Romance (and hilarity!) ensue. (Credit for cover image goes to SquirrelTamer of Deviantart).
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

It was a beautiful Thursday afternoon, two days before Spring Break for P.S. 118. Arnold and the gang had been challenged for the umpteenth time by Wolfgang and the fifth graders to a game of football at the City Park. While the usual suspects (Arnold, Helga, Gerald, Sid, Stinky etc.) were busy getting down and dirty on the field, some of the less athletic nine year olds (Phoebe, Eugene, Sheena, Rhonda and Nadine) were sitting on the sidelines cheering on their fellow classmates.

As Rhonda was busy preening herself and admiring her reflection in her compact vanity mirror, Nadine was preoccupied with rooting around in her backpack.

'What are you looking for, Nadine?' asked Sheena.

'Just checking to see if Geoffrey is okay,' replied Nadine, her eyes still fixated on the contents of her backpack.

'Is that your new bug?' asked Eugene.

'Yup. I found him on my way to school today, he's really special….wanna see?'

Nadine pulled out from her backpack a large glass cylindrical jar, housing a considerably large bright yellow beetle with black spots. Eugene and Sheena were visibly impressed.

'That's amazing!' remarked Sheena.

Nadine beamed. 'Look, Rhonda – isn't he magnificent?'

Now, Rhonda was no stranger to grotesque sights (after all, she had to deal with Curly on a daily basis). But nothing could prepare her from looking at her own flawless face to the million tiny eyes of a creature roughly the size of her own palm. Naturally, Rhonda screeched and recoiled in horror at the sight of Nadine's latest conquest.

'Ugh! Get that repulsive creature away from me!' cried Rhonda, knocking the jar from Nadine's hands and onto the football field, where the lid had popped off upon impact.

'Oh, no – Geoffrey!' Nadine leapt from her seat on the sidelines and onto her hands and knees, frantically scouring the ground for her lost prize before it could take flight.

Meanwhile, it was overtime in the match between the fourth and fifth graders. Both teams were tied and the next score would determine the victor. The final play was made; the ball was passed to Edmund, who then looked to his teammates to see which among them was open for a touchdown.

'I'm open, I'm open!' yelled Wolfgang, waving his arms like a madman. Edmund took a step back and launched a long pass just before getting tackled to the ground by Stinky and Harold.

There was no one who could catch up to Wolfgang in time; all he had to do was complete the pass and the game was essentially over. Wolfgang ran with his arms outstretched, his eyes on the airborne pigskin, totally unaware that just a few yards in front of him, Nadine was still crawling about looking for her beetle.

'What the heck is Nadine doing on the field?!' asked Helga angrily.

'Willikers! Wolfgang's dang near about to trample her!' cried Stinky.

'Wolfgang, watch out!' yelled Edmund.

'Got ya!' exclaimed Nadine, dropping the jar over the beetle in triumph.

'Got ya!' exclaimed Wolfgang, just as the football landed squarely in his open palms. 'What the-?!'

Only at the last second did Wolfgang and Nadine spot the other person. Nadine ducked and curled herself around the jar, protecting her specimen and bracing for impact. Wolfgang tripped over Nadine and found him sailing several feet in the air, out of bounds, and rolling down the hill bordering the field, running into a couple of unfortunate bicyclists, and finally stopping after colliding with a City Park trashcan. There was a horrible crashing noise upon impact, and all who witnessed the impact collectively groaned, fourth and fifth graders alike.

'I don't think he's okay,' remarked Eugene.


	2. Chapter 2

Wolfgang's accident was the talk of the playground the next morning at P.S. 118. Sid in particular was eager to regale the events of yesterday's football match to the other kids unable to bein attendance.

'Boy Howdy – you should've seen it, you guys! It was like a nuclear bomb going off!' Sid stood on top of the wooden table and made his point by slamming his fist into his palm and imitating an explosion. While many of the boys laughed raucously at the reenactment, some of the other witnesses were a bit more sober (Nadine was notably very silent, by comparison).

'I hope he's alright,' remarked Arnold. 'Wolfgang took a pretty nasty fall. And he looked like he was in a lot of pain.'

'Oh! Oh! Here's Wolfgang after crashing into that trashcan!' Sid sat on the top of the table and rocked back and forth, holding his ankle as if he was injured. 'Owie owie owie owie owie!'

Once again the majority of group started up their raucous laughter. 'Ah, I'm sure the big beluga is fine,' quipped Helga in her usual sympathetic way. 'Besides, this is Wolfgang we're talking about here – the guy's barely out of grade school and he's already built like a Russian tank. How bad a shape could he be?'

As if on cue, Helga's question was answered. A hush fell upon the schoolyard as Wolfgang appeared, plus two notable additions: a pair of crutches under his arm and a bandaged right foot. The crowd watched in stunned silence, then in hushed murmurs as Wolfgang made his way across the pavement, his eyes cast downward .

Even his fellow fifth graders were less than sympathetic when he approached.

'Heh heh - hey Wolfgang, that's a good look for you!' quipped Edmund (obviously fed the line by a couple less than brave boys).

'Shut up,' hissed Wolfgang under his breath.

The school bell rang and the students made their way to side entrance of P.S. 118. As they were walking, Nadine finally broke her silence.

'Poor Wolfgang,' she said. This caused several of her classmates within earshot to stop dead in their tracks.

'Poor Wolfgang? Poor Wolfgang?' remarked Helga in disbelief.

'You do realize you're talking about…Wolfgang, right?' asked Gerald. 'The fifth grader?'

'The same Wolfgang that terrorizes us fourth graders indiscriminately just for fun?' remarked Sid.

'The same Wolfgang that slaps my belly and calls me Pink Boy every lunch period?' added Harold.

'The same Wolfgang that gives us wedgies and stuffs us into lockers on our way to class every day?' asked Eugene.

'The same Wolfgang that enchanted 18th century Europe with his lyrical symphonies and concertos?'

Phoebe chimed in. 'Actually, Curly, I think you're referring to Wolfgang-Amadeus Mozart.'

Curly pointed an accusing finger at Phoebe. 'That's what they WANT you to think,' he shot back.

Unused to being the centre of attention, Nadine felt flustered underneath the accusing glare of her fellow classmates. 'I-I dunno, you guys…I feel partially responsible over what happened…'

Rhonda scoffed. 'Oh, please. Nadine, you have absolutely nothing to feel guilty about. If you ask me, yesterday's mishap couldn't have happened to a more deserving person.'

The other fourth graders eagerly voiced their consent.

'And thanks to you, Nadine, all us fourth graders can enjoy our Spring Break in peace,' said Sid.

'Let's hear it for Nadine, the Wolfgang-slayer!' yelled Harold. As Gerald started off the successive cheers of hip-hip-hooray, Nadine gradually fell to the back of the back. Arnold put a reassuring hand on the dejected Nadine's shoulder.

'You OK?' asked Arnold.

Nadine sighed. 'I dunno, Arnold…I still feel bad about what happened. What would you do in a situation like this?'

Arnold thought for a moment. 'Well…if I did something to unintentionally harm someone else…I would try to find a way to make it up to them.'

Nadine balked. 'You mean…_help_ Wolfgang?'

'Why not? Everyone has a bit of good in them. Even Wolfgang. Who knows, maybe you could find a way to bring it out of him,' He patted her for support. 'You'll figure out what to do.'

'I dunno, Arnold…' she repeated, but then Nadine caught a glimpse of a lone monarch butterfly flying high in the sky. She paused and watched in awe as the tiny orange insect fluttered gracefully against a beautiful contrast of clear blue sky.

Before long, both she and Arnold were the last two children outside. 'Nadine?'

But Nadine was still mesmerized by the monarch, partially because it was one of her favourite insects, but also because she took it as a sign for what she had to do.


	3. Chapter 3

Wolfgang grumbled when he heard the doorbell chime. It was bad enough that his team wound up tying with the fourth graders on Thursday (in his eyes, it was an outcome far worse than even losing), but on top of that he was stuck with a bum ankle. The doctor told him it was sprained and that he should stay off of it for at least a week, meaning that he would basically waste his entire Spring Break in crutches. And now, as he hobbled his way to the front door, he was preparing to unleash his wrath on whatever hapless Campfire Lass was on the other side…

Instead, Wolfgang found himself face to face with a fourth grader. He recognized her; it was the same fourth grader that he ran into which caused his current handicap. He narrowed his eyes and glowered. 'What do YOU want?'

Nadine's immediate reaction was to run away, but instead she mustered up all her courage and stood her ground in front of the angry fifth grader. 'Hi, you probably don't remember me…'

'Oh, I remember you – you're that clumsy fourth grader that tripped me and ruined my Spring Break.'

Nadine gulped and smiled nervously. 'Yeah. That's me.'

'So what are you doing here? Came to apologize?'

Nadine nodded eagerly, which was exactly the response Wolfgang expected. 'Well, apology NOT accepted!' He was hoping for a satisfying door slam straight in Nadine's face, but she intercepted by sticking her foot inside the door.

'I knew you were going to say that. And you're right , frankly, I don't think an apology is good enough either. But I did a lot of thinking today and – well, you know the butterfly, right? It starts out as a caterpillar. It scours the earth, eating everything in its path…

(During this exchange, Wolfgang wasn't really listening to Nadine, and was still struggling to close the door, but Nadine was determined to get her point across…)

'…but with a little bit of time, and a lot of a nurturing, the caterpillar emerges from its cocoon and transforms into a beautiful butterfly.'

'What are you blathering on about? Never mind, just…get inside already,' at last, Wolfgang stepped aside and allowed Nadine to enter. After taking a few steps inside, she turned to Wolfgang and smiled.

'I was just trying to say, right now you're a caterpillar…with a sprained ankle. And it's my fault that you got this way. So…I've decided to use my time off during Spring Break to nurture you back to health. I'll be your cocoon, and by the end of next week, you'll be Wolfgang the Butterfly, ready to take on the world!'

Nadine looked Wolfgang in the face, only to be met with a glazed look of disinterest.

'Wolfgang the Butterfly…right. Hey, how did you find out where I live anyway?'

Nadine followed behind Wolfgang as he hobbled his way back into the living room and to his seat in front of the television. 'Well…it actually wasn't that difficult. See, I talked to all of my classmates, and it turned out that Joey takes the same bus route as you. In fact, he lives just one block away from your house, so I just followed him home and – presto! – here I am.'

'Uh-huh,' Wolfgang plopped himself on the couch and focused on the TV, completely ignoring Nadine's presence. Not sure what to do next, Nadine sat on the loveseat next to the couch. As the two of them sat in silence, Nadine twiddled her thumbs and began to survey her surroundings. It was a veritable bachelor pad: shag carpet, empty cans of various beverages strewn about on the floor, rock posters and sports paraphernalia plastered haphazardly on the wall with no consideration for colour coordination (it was the type of thing that would give her friend Rhonda a conniption fit).

'Interesting…living arrangements,' was the best compliment Nadine could muster.

'Suits me,' was Wolfgang's response, never taking his eyes off the boob tube.

Eventually, Nadine became bolder and decided to walk around the room a bit. She stopped when she spied a large book jutting out from a pile of old newspapers next to the TV.

'Ooh, what's that?' Nadine walked over to the book, but no sooner had she gotten her hands on it did Wolfgang suddenly appear by her side and snatch it away.

'You do NOT touch my things! EVER!' snapped Wolfgang, taking the book and placing high out of reach from curious hands.

Nadine was crestfallen. 'Sorry…' she said timidly, her spider braids almost wilting in response to how she felt.

Wolfgang closed his eyes and took a deep breath, as if Nadine was testing his patience. When he did finally open his eyes again, he gave her a cold, hard look. 'Just. Go. Home. You're wasting your time here, Fourth Grader.'

Wolfgang hobbled out of the living room, and Nadine followed close behind. 'But I haven't even gotten a chance to help you yet!'

'I don't need help,' snapped Wolfgang. 'Especially from a good-for-nothing fourth grader that got me into this mess in the first place!'

Wolfgang stopped in front of flight of stairs. He was trying to get to his room on the second floor, and never realized how many steps there were or how steep the stair case was. Nadine stood behind him in silence and watched. First he tried to step up with his left foot first, but that didn't work; he tried propping himself up by the crutches, but that didn't work either. After several false starts, Wolfgang sighed and hung his head in defeat.

'Easy now…almost there…careful…there you go…'

With Nadine's assistance, Wolfgang was finally able to make it to the top of the steps. Nadine patted him on the back and smiled. 'There. That wasn't so bad, now was it?'

'Yeah well, you didn't let me fall down the stairs at least. Nice work, Fourth Grader.'

'It's Nadine, actually,'

'Whatever…' Wolfgang limped past her and stood in front of his bedroom door. He held the doorknob, paused, and stared at Nadine, who looked expectantly at him.

'Well…?'

'Well, _what_?'

'Well….are you going to let me be your cocoon?'

Wolfgang groaned and slammed his head against the doorway. 'If I say yes, will you promise to leave me alone for the rest of the day?'

Nadine nodded.

'And you have to promise not to tell another living soul about this.'

Nadine nodded again.

'And you must never, EVER, refer to me as a butterfly again.'

'I promise,' Nadine declared.

Wolfgang closed his eyes, took another deep breath, then exhaled. 'Fourth Grader….you got yourself a deal.'

Nadine beamed. 'Really? That's great! I promise, Wolfgang, you won't regret it, and I'll make sure that you have the very best Spring Break that you can possibly have, and I—'

'Uh, Fourth Grader? You're still here.'

'Oh, right. I'll go now.' Nadine ran downstairs and exited the house. As she did this, Wolfgang rolled his eyes and entered his room, slamming his room door the way he wanted to slam out the rest of his miserable day.


	4. Chapter 4

**MONDAY**

Wolfgang opened the door to the smiling face of Nadine.

'Welcome back, fourth grader,' he said drily, letting her in. He immediately handed her a sheet with writing.

Nadine frowned. 'What's this?'

'A to-do list,' replied Wolfgang, matter-of-factly.

'To-do list…?'

'Yup. Errands, chores, meals that I have to cook…What? You can't expect me to do all of that in my condition.' He pointed to his bandaged ankle for emphasis.

'Uh…of course not…'

'Exactly. So get cracking, fourth grader,' he said, making a beeline for the couch and turning on the TV.

Nadine looked at Wolfgang, then at the list, then back at Wolfgang. 'Butterfly…butterfly…butterfly…' was her mantra as she rolled up her sleeves and prepared to get to work.

Wolfgang smiled to himself. _She wants to help, I'll let her help. I'll work her so hard she'll be begging to get away from me. Heheheh…_

Later in the day, Nadine was dusting the living room while Wolfgang remained on the couch, sipping a cold drink through a straw. At some point, he shook the glass so that the ice would clink audibly.

'Fourth Grader, my drink needs a refill. Also, my pillow needs fluffing.'

Nadine walked over to Wolfgang, fluffed his pillow, and took the glass from his hand.

'I have a name, you know. Just call me Nadine.'

'Oh, I forgot – could you change the channel for me?'

'Didn't you just have the rem-?'

Wolfgang pointed the remote control, now on the ground next to the television. Nadine walked over to the remote, but when she bent down to pick it up, she felt something soft and fluffy hit her on the head. She turned around just in time to see Wolfgang with his hands behind his back, whistling nonchalantly, the pillow noticeably absent. When she glared he glared back. 'Hey, where's my Yahoo soda? I'm dying of thirst over here!'

Nadine slapped the remote control into Wolfgang's open palm, turned on her heel, and marched away. 'Butterfly…butterfly…butterfly…' was what she repeated to herself as she went into the kitchen to get Wolfgang his refill.

Wolfgang laughed, content that his ruse was working. At that moment, however, a spider descended down from the ceiling and stopped just in front of Wolfgang's nose.

'_Aaah!_' Wolfgang, startled, jumped onto the edge of the couch, and ending up falling over on the other side. 'KILL IT! KILL IT!'

Nadine reappeared from the kitchen, sliding into the living room with a cold Yahoo soda in one hand and a broom in the other. 'What is it?!'

Nadine followed the screaming back to the couch, where the giant black spider now occupied the same space Wolfgang had originally. Nadine rolled her eyes. 'Relax. It's just a harmless house spider.' She grabbed the spider by the web, opened a nearby window, and gently lowered it into the garden below the windowsill.

She walked back over to the couch, looked over at the now whimpering Wolfgang, and asked, sweetly. 'Would you like me to fluff your pillow for you?'

**WEDNESDAY**

Nadine came over again with a sealed flat white box.

'I've noticed you're always alone when I come over,' remarked Nadine as they made their way to the kitchen.

'My old man works,' replied Wolfgang, succinctly.

'What about your moth-?'

'So what's in the box, Bug Girl?' asked Wolfgang, abruptly changing the subject.

Nadine decided not to press the topic – the title of Bug Girl being a notable promotion from the irreverent Fourth Grader – and sat at the kitchen island to present the box. 'I thought you and I could share this box of chocolate my mom got from her trip to Thailand.'

'Chocolates, huh? Now you're talking!' Wolfgang ripped the lid of the box, grabbed a handful of assorted chocolates and stuffed them all in his mouth simultaneously.

'Not bad, Bug Girl,' he said, between chews. 'What inside these chocolates? Almonds? Raisins?'

'Hmm…' Nadine took the lid from Wolfgang and read the text inside. 'That one's scorpion, that one's grasshopper, that long one's worms, this one's ants…'

As Nadine listed off the fillings, Wolfgang gotten greener and greener until eventually he collapsed on the ground.

When he came to, Nadine accompanied him to the bathroom. There she stood in front of the bathroom door while Wolfgang violently retched on the other side.

**FRIDAY**

As soon as Nadine came through the door on Thursday, Wolfgang thrust a CD jewel case in her hand.

'I got a new video game,' replied Wolfgang, already halfway to the couch. 'And I need to you to help me test it out.'

Nadine inspected the case, a picture of a surly, bare-chested man brandishing a rifle was plastered on the cover. 'I'm not really good at video games…'

Wolfgang scoffed, picking a game controller off the ground. 'Obviously. You're a girl. But Edmund's out of town for Spring Break, so I gotta practice with SOMEBODY.'

Nadine chose to ignore the misogynistic remark. 'Alright, fine,' she sighed, entering the living room grabbing a controller, and parking herself beside Wolfgang on the couch.

It was a war-related game, a first-person shooter. Of course, Wolfgang couldn 't be bothered to teach Nadine the basics, so the first half hour of gameplay was basically Wolfgang dominated every round, his character dancing over the mangled corpse of Nadine's character during the Victor animation.

Wolfgang laughed. 'Oh man, you're really bad at this!'

Nadine gritted her teeth, but said nothing. As time went on, however, the tables had turned, and the matches weren't as one-sided. Eventually, Nadine started to win the occasional round.

This did not sit well with Wolfgang, who came up with a litany of excuses. 'I'm still trying to master this game. I was just going easy on you. My hand fell asleep!'

Finally, Wolfgang was frustrated enough to use one of his crutches to switch the power button off on the game console.

'Hey! I was winning!' yelled Nadine angrily

'That game really sucked anyway,' said Wolfgang. I wanna play something else.'

'Alright, fine,' she said, standing up and rummaging through a messy pile of game cases on the floor.

The next game they played was a fighting game. This time, it took Nadine even less time to better Wolfgang, and eventually she was winning several rounds in a row.

'No way,' muttered Wolfgang, while Nadine silently pumped her fist in victory. 'Okay, no more fooling around…'

Wolfgang had ordered Nadine to pop in 'Red Asphalt' – a hack-n-slash, horror-themed racing game. This was his best game; there was no way he would let the fourth grader best him again.

But on the final lap of Nosferatu's Alley, it looked as though Nadine was going to accomplish exactly that. Nadine purple spider car was in first place, Wolfgang's hairy Werewolf mobile was tailing close behind. The finish line was in sight; Wolfgang used his final speed boost to jettison himself into the first position.

'Yes!' exclaimed Wolfgang. 'See you later, loser!'

But Nadine was undeterred. Using her special ability, she launched a web from the spider car and yanked Wolfgang's vehicle backward just as it was about to cross the finish line. The recoil from the maneuver caused Wolfgang's car to collide with her own, and both vehicles burst into flames. The text 'DEAD LAST' flashed on the screen, before it faded to black and when back to the stage select.

Wolfgang dropped his controller. Nadine covered her mouth with her hand in order to suppress a giggle. He turned to look at her, then smiled an evil grin. 'Why, you little…!'

He unexpectedly grabbed Nadine and proceeded to give her a noogie. Nadine cried out, more from surprise than from any sort of physical pain, and suddenly burst out in a wave of giggles.

'What's so funny?' he said when he finally let her go.

'Nothing…' replied Nadine, wiping a tear away from her eye. 'It's that…you really suck at this game.'

'I suck? You suck!' Wolfgang shoved Nadine back to her side of the couch, but it was a playful shove, not intended to cause any harm.

'Nuh-uh, you suck!' Nadine shoved him back in retaliation.

'Nuh-uh!'

'Yuh-huh!'

'Nuh-uh!'

'Yuh-huh!'

This shoving match went on for some time until Nadine finally resigned to just fall on Wolfgang and the two of them had a good laugh.

When they finally had settled down, both Nadine and Wolfgang looked at each other for a split second before snapping back to reality, both children jumping to their own sides of the couch and sitting upright, as far away from each other as humanly possible.

'Uh..seriously, though, you suck,' said Wolfgang sternly.

'Right,' agreed Nadine.

'Oh crap – look what time it is!' Wolfgang spied the time on the football clock on the wall and scrambled to get his crutches. ' I gotta get going!'

'Again?' Nadine asked, standing up and helping Wolfgang to the door. 'Are you sure you don't need my help?'

Wolfgang shook his head adamantly, scaling down the front porch. 'No way. This is top-secret fifth grader stuff I have to deal with. You wouldn't understand. See you around, Bug Girl.'

As Wolfgang caught the nearest bus to his house, Nadine sighed and closed the front door behind her. She followed the bus with her eyes; as it drove past, she spotted Wolfgang making a funny face at her in the window. She laughed, then was startled when she began to feel something else, fluttering away in the pit of stomach.

Nadine gulped. It couldn't be...

_Butterflies?_


	5. Chapter 5

Poor, poor inquisitive Nadine. Curiosity had gotten the best of her.

One minute she was vacuuming the living room while Wolfgang was using the washroom. In the next minute, there she was, standing on her tiptoes, reaching for the very book Wolfgang had forbade her to touch on the first day in his household.

Every day since the Monday, Wolfgang would leave in the afternoon to some undisclosed location. He was so secretive about where he was going, and yet every time Nadine chanced to ask about his whereabouts, he would either flat out ignore the question or remind her that she was a fourth grader, and therefore unprivy to such valuable information. But today Nadine was determined to uncover the mystery, with or without Wolfgang's approval.

Nadine could only stretch so tall; at last, just as the chair she was standing on threatened to topple underneath her, she got hold of the book and leapt back to solid ground.

She opened the book and was surprised to see that it was actually a photo album. In it, there were a lot of photos of Wolfgang and his father, and some of his fifth grade friends. But towards the end of the album, Nadine spotted a single photograph of a very young girl with messy, curly hair, the same blonde colour as Wolfgang's.

Nadine heard the sound of a toilet flushing. Quickly, she jumped back and the chair and put the photo album in the same place that she had found it. In her haste, however, she hadn't realized the picture of the little girl had fallen out and now lay on the floor. Nadine hurried to scoop up the picture and hide it behind her back just as Wolfgang entered the living room.

"Well, I guess it looks alright in here, fourth grader," he said, inspecting the cleanliness of the living room. "I guess you can go early today. I've got some errands to run anyway."

"Great! Then I guess I'll just…get going then…going on home…to my house…right now…bye!" As she said this, Nadine purposely sidestepped away from Wolfgang so he couldn't see what she was hiding behind her back, but when she got to the front door she literally bolted outside.

After about 20 minutes, Wolfgang also left the house. He then waited at the usual bus stop and was driven away. This time, however, Nadine had been spying on him from across the street, behind a row of trash cans. Just as the bus was out of sight, she hopped on her bike and followed it along its route.

Nadine's travels took her to the other side of the city. She was exhausted from trailing the bus and was contemplating giving up her mission, when she saw Wolfgang finally disembark and walk toward a large hospital. Nadine locked up her bike and followed him inside, but at a distance. Peering from the entranceway, Nadine saw Wolfgang say a few words to a woman behind the reception desk, and then make his way to an open elevator to the left of the reception area. Once the elevator doors were closed, Nadine approached the woman behind the desk.

"Excuse me, miss," she said, fishing the photograph out of her pocket and presenting it to the woman. "I think the boy you were just talking to dropped this."

"Oh dear," said the woman. "Well, I suppose you can give it to me, and I'll give it back to him when he leaves."

"I can give it to him," replied Nadine. "I'm on my way up anyway to visit my great-uncle Geoffrey."

"Aren't you sweet?" the woman wrote the floor and room number on a slip of paper and handed it to Nadine.

"Thanks," said Nadine as she made her way to the same elevator Wolfgang had used.

She got off at the fifth floor. As soon as she walked into the hallway, Nadine was forced to duck behind a potted plant; Wolfgang was only a few feet away, and talking to another woman, this time a tired but pleasant-looking older lady with the same Wolfgang-blond hair, cut into a bob. Eventually they both entered one of the rooms along the corridor.

Now Nadine's curiosity was piqued; she simply had to know who Wolfgang was visiting in that room. But how to get a closer look without getting noticed? Nadine looked to her right; on the opposite end of the hall from Wolfgang, she spotted a room labeled "Laundry", with the door ajar. Five minutes later, she emerged from the same room wearing oversized white scrubs and a surgical mask to conceal her identity.

Keeping as inconspicuous as possible, Nadine peeked into the room that Wolfgang and the woman had entered. The two of them were standing around a hospital bed; sitting in the bed was the same young girl that was in the photograph. She looked a lot paler here, but she was all smiles couldn't be happier to have her two guests. What was even more startling was how Wolfgang in particular regarded the girl. He returned her smiles (though his eyes looked a little bit sadder), and he even placed his hand on her head and rustled her thick, blond, unruly curls. This was a side to Wolfgang no fourth-grader had ever seen before, but Nadine was glad to bear witness to it.

"There you are!"

Nadine's heart stopped. She turned around and was face to face with a stern-looking plump nurse with short red curly hair staring her down. "And just what do you think you're doing?"

"I-I…uh…I mean…"

"Don't you know what time it is?"

"Huh?"

The nurse took Nadine firmly by the hand and practically dragged her down the hall into another room. "Mr. Thompson is due for his sponge bath."

"Sponge bath?! Wait…you don't understand, I think there's been a mistake…!"

"Don't try to talk your way out of this one! Your name is on the roster, clear as day, and it says it's your turn to give Thompson his sponge bath. So get to it!"

The nurse placed a large sponge in her hand and exited the room, leaving Nadine alone with a scruffy-looking elderly man fast asleep in a tub.

Hands shaking, Nadine slowly approached the tub and dipped the sponge in the water. As she thought about fleeing, the nurse returned and folded her arms, blocking her only means of escape.

Trapped, Nadine had no other choice than to attempt to clean Thompson. But as soon as the damp sponge made contact with his back, the old man snapped wide awake.

"Krauts! Dangnabbit! The Krauts got us surrounded, we're under attack!"

Thompson threw his hands up in the air and started making siren noises, at which point Nadine lost all her resolve and accidentally sent the sponge flying across the room, hitting the nurse square in the face. Momentarily blinded and disoriented from the soapy water assault, the nurse failed to see that the sponge had then dropped right in front of her feet, and when she stepped on it, she pratfalled onto the ground.

Nadine took advantage of her window of opportunity and ran out of the room. Just when she thought she was home free, however, Nadine bumped into something solid and fell to the floor, losing her mask in the process. She looked up and there, standing before her, practically towering over her, was a not-at-all pleased Wolfgang.

There were no two ways about it. She was BUSTED.


	6. Chapter 6

Despite the fact he was on crutches, Nadine still had difficulty keeping up with Wolfgang as he stormed out of the hospital.

"I cannot believe you followed me here!"

"Wolfgang, wait up!"

"You shouldn't be here! This doesn't concern you!"

"I said I was sorry…!"

Nadine almost bumped into Wolfgang when he stopped to turn around and glare at her. "You just don't _get it_, do you? I have a reputation to uphold! If anyone were to see me here, not to mention associating with the likes of you…"

"I was just trying to get to know you better, OK?" Nadine spat out.

Wolfgang was momentarily taken aback, and looked at Nadine as if she had grown a second head.

"We've spent a lot of time together these past few days. And you wouldn't tell me where you were going…I thought maybe if I followed you, I'd get to know more about you. See what makes Wolfgang tick."

Wolfgang sighed in exasperation, and poked Nadine with his index finger to emphasize a point. "Let's get one thing straight here. Fourth graders do not "get to know" fifth graders. Fourth graders **FEAR** fifth graders. And you're right, we **HAVE** been spending a lot of time together. Too much time."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying don't bother coming over tomorrow. I'm breaking our arrangement. I want things to go back to the way they were, the status quo depends on it."

"But what about your-?"

"I'll be fine. There's only today and tomorrow left of Spring Break, so go enjoy it. Now let's get out of here."

Wolfgang turned back around and headed for the bus stop, but he soon realized that Nadine wasn't following him, and was in fact walking across the street.

"Hey, fourth grader!" he yelled out. "Where the heck are you going? The bus stop's right here!"

But Nadine didn't respond back. Wolfgang saw her look frantically left and right when she made it to the other side. He growled in frustration and made his way over to the other side to join her.

"What are you doing?" he asked again.

"Looking for my bike, I parked it right here." Nadine said, an edge of panic creeping into her voice.

Wolfgang looked at her in shock. "You BIKED here?"

"I don't understand it. I swear, I just parked my bike right here and went across the street into the hospital…."

"Well, this neighborhood isn't the greatest to leave a bike unattended. Even if you lock it up."

Nadine gasped; sure enough, not too far from where she had locked up her bike, she spotted the lock on the pavement. It looked as though it had been shorn off with a cable cutter.

Wolfgang shrugged. "Told ya."

"Oh no, oh no oh no oh no…" Nadine picked up the remains of the lock and began pacing back and forth, shaking her head. "This isn't good. My parents are going to kill me…"

"I can't believe you biked clear across the city like that! How stupid can you be?!"

But Nadine wasn't listening. Eventually she stopped pacing. She started breathing rapidly…

"Hey, what are you…you better not be…fourth grader, I'm warning you, don't you dare-!"

Nadine started to cry. A very loud, wet, bawling kind of cry. At the same time, the bus was turning the corner several blocks away and was slowly approaching the bus stop.

"Oh, crap, the bus is coming!" Wolfgang dug in his pocket and handed Nadine several wadded up bills. "Here, use this to call yourself a cab! And there should be enough left over to buy a new bike! Now will you please shut up?"

Nadine stopped crying and stared at the money, stunned. "I…"

"Yeah, yeah, just don't tell anyone about this alright? Now, I gotta go…CRAP!"

Wolfgang hobbled back across the street and caught the bus just in time. Nadine looked at the money in her hand, then back at the bus as it sailed down the street. After she wiped her tear-stained eyes, a smile slowly crept onto her face.

That did it.

Nadine knew that she was supposed to fear fifth-graders. But she never expected to be in like with one of them.

But now it was official. That brief moment of kindness displayed to her solidified what she had suspected all along.

Yes, sir. Nadine was in like with Wolfgang.


	7. Chapter 7

"So nice of you to finally grace me with your presence," said Rhonda, sarcastically.

It was Saturday night, and Nadine was sleeping over at Rhonda's house. Nadine had spent very little time with her best friend during the Spring Break, and Rhonda was quick to let her know. She entered her bedroom in a nightgown and a face mask of indeterminate goop. "Honestly, Nadine, it's like you completely forgot about me this week."

"Sorry," apologized Nadine, who was lying on Rhonda's four-poster bed, grasping a pillow to her chest. "I've been really busy the last few days."

Rhonda scoffed and walked across the room to sit in front of her vanity mirror, wiping the goop off her skin. "Oh please, what could possibly be more important than spending time with your very best friend?" She then grabbed her tweezers from the dresser and methodically plucked away any stray hairs from her face.

Nadine sat up gripped her knees close to her body. "Well actually…I kinda met a boy…"

Rhonda immediately stopped what she was doing and turned to look at her best friend, intrigued. "Nadine! So THAT'S what been going on! Why haven't you told me?"

"I wasn't sure at first, but now I think that actually sorta like him. I mean…_like him_ like him."

"How wonderful!" Rhonda went over and joined Nadine on the bed, propping herself up with her hands. "So go on – dish. Who's the lucky boy? Is it Peapod Kid? I always thought you would make a cute couple! Or maybe it's Arnold? Iggy? Ugh, _pleeease_ don't tell me it's Sid. That would simply _kill_ me…!"

Nadine shook her head. "It's not anyone from our class. I don't think you know him that well. Actually…_I_ don't really know him. I'm not even sure if he likes me likes me back."

"Ooh…the plot thickens," Rhonda said, coyly.

"Can you give me any advice to win him over?" Rhonda was about to speak when Nadine added, "_Without_ suggesting I get a makeover."

Rhonda frowned and pouted a bit. "You're such a spoilsport." She sighed and placed an arm around her best friend. "Look, Nadine, just be yourself. You're a wonderful girl just on your own, and if this boy can't see that, then it's his loss."

Nadine looked at Rhonda. "You really think so?"

"I know so. Of course, if you WANT to do something with your hair…"

Nadine threw her pillow at Rhonda.

"Hey! It was just a suggestion!"

It was Sunday, early afternoon. Wolfgang had entered the kitchen in search of food, but when he opened the fridge, found only bare shelves. As per the norm, he was the only at home, and it felt eerily quiet without the incessant banter of Nadine in his ear. For a brief moment, he almost sort of missed her…

Wolfgang slammed the door of the fridge, and quashed those thoughts immediately. What was done was done; he had already warned her not to come back the other day. He looked in one of the kitchen cabinets and pulled out the only edible foodstuff he could find: an unopened jar of relish. He then got a spoon and dejectedly sat at the kitchen island. He opened the jar but spent more time stirring the minced pickle condiment than actually eating it. Just as he mustered enough courage to bring a spoonful of relish to his lips, the doorbell rang.

"The old man better have went grocery shopping," he grumbled under his breath. When he opened the door he was surprised to see Nadine, grinning and holding a large picnic basket.

"It's such a lovely day. Thought you'd like to go on a picnic with me. My mom made the sandwiches. They're really good."

Wolfgang opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by the low, gurgling rumble of his own stomach.

Nadine smiled. "So I take that as a 'yes'?"

Indeed, it was a gorgeous sunny day; the perfect kind of day for two individuals to enjoy a picnic in City Park, which is exactly where Nadine and Wolfgang found themselves. They sat on a park bench, with the large picnic basket in between them.

"You're really going to like this," said Nadine, rummaging through the basket. "My mom packed a lot of things. There's sandwiches, Yahoo! soda, potato salad, coconut cream pie…"

As Nadine listed off the contents of the basket, a bumblebee busied itself with buzzing around Wolfgang's head. Annoyed, Wolfgang began swatting his hand to shoo it away, but the bee persisted to fly around its current location. Just when he was about to literally punch the insect out of the air, Nadine grabbed his balled up fist with both of her small hands.

"Don't," she pleaded.

"This stupid bee's going to sting me!" snapped Wolfgang.

"No, it's not," argued Nadine. "Just look."

Nadine and Wolfgang stood perfectly still. The bee buzzed around some more, then finally decided to rest on Wolfgang's nose. Nadine released his hand. Wolfgang looked cross-eyed at the bee dancing about on his nose, then attempted to swat it again, but ending up hitting himself in the face.

Nadine held her hand out to the bee, which buzzed around it for a spell, then finally rested on her arm. "See? It's harmless." Wolfgang watched intently as the bee followed a winding path along her arm till it reached point of her elbow, then flew high into the sky and out of sight.

Wolfgang eyed her as she waved goodbye to the departing insect. "So tell me something Bug Girl – why do you like bugs so much?"

Nadine shrugged. "What can I say? I've liked them since I was a little girl. Bugs are just…neat. There's so many different variety of bugs in the world. Beetles, spiders, caterpillars, one's that fly, ones that crawl, ones that camouflage. I like them because no two are exactly the same. But also because they're so complex. Some are even misunderstood, like that bumblebee." She turned to look at Wolfgang. "And like you."

Nadine handed Wolfgang a sandwich, then got one for herself and dug in. Wolfgang did not immediately bite into his sandwich, instead preferring to look at it as he took in what Nadine had said to him. "You're a strange one, Fourth Grader."

"You don't have to keep calling me Fourth Grader. Just call me…never mind."

Nadine went back to eating her sandwich. Wolfgang to a bite as well and for a while the two of them ate in silence.

"Rudy."

Nadine paused mid-bite to look at Wolfgang. "Huh?"

"Wolfgang's actually my middle name. My full name is Rudolph Wolfgang Fitzgerald. And those people you saw at the hospital yesterday…that was my mother…and my sister."

"Is your sister going to be OK?"

"Who knows? She's spent her whole life going to the hospital, so it's completely normal to her. My parents are divorced, so I don't get to see her as often. She lives with my mother, and I live with my old man."

"Sounds like you really care for her."

"Yeah…you wanna know what sucks about the whole thing? We used to be together, like a real family. Even with her illness, we were always happy, because we knew we had each other. But then my parents split just before I started the fourth grade….and things just began to suck. I couldn't be there for her as much anymore, I couldn't be the big brother that I wanted to be. That's why I make a point to visit her in the hospital whenever she's in town. That's why every time I see fourth grader, it reminds me of what I've been through, and it makes me so mad I just wanna…"

Nadine put a comforting hand on Wolfgang's shoulder, and he relaxed.

"Anyway, you said you wanted to know my lifestory. There it is."

"I'm happy you told me. Thank you."

"Whatever. Where's that coconut cream pie?"

Nadine pulled out the coconut cream pie and cut it into several slices, then gave a piece to Wolfgang.

"It smells good," remarked Wolfgang, who shirked the fork and just shovelled the pie into his mouth with his hands. Nadine started to giggle. "What?"

Nadine pointed at his nose. Wolfgang crossed his eyes again; sure enough, he had a huge dollop of cream pie on his nose. Wolfgang wiped it off with his arm and grinned malevolently at the still-giggling Nadine. "Oh, you think that's funny, huh?"

Wolfgang took some of the remaining cream on his plate and put an even bigger dollop on Nadine's chin. "Hey!" she gasped, and retaliated by rubbing her fork along Wolfgang's cheek, leaving behind a trail of cream.

Wolfgang took a whole slice of pie from the basket, but Nadine got wise to what he was planning and jumped up from her seat.

The move didn't deter him. "Ankle or no ankle, you're going to pay for that!" Without the use of his crutches, Wolfgang stood up and pursued Nadine. Nadine shrieked and avoided Wolfgang long enough to pull the tub of potato salad from the basket. When Wolfgang threw the slice, she ducked behind the park bench and lobbed a nice helping of the salad into his face.

"Had enough?" asked Nadine, keeping her spoon at the ready to fire another glob of salad.

Wolfgang wiped the potato salad from his face, grabbed a bottle of Yahoo! soda, and shook it violently. "Oh, I'm just getting started," he said, as he opened the top, spraying the chocolate beverage everywhere and starting a full-scale food war.

Wolfgang and Nadine were a veritable mess when they left the park. They were covered from head to toe in foodstuffs from a battle that only ceased when they had run out of items to throw. Despite their sticky, messy appearance, they were both laughing as the walked, garnering the startled stares of passers-by.

Only when they stopped just outside of City Park did they finally calm down.

"I can explain away the bike but not this," Nadine said. "Hopefully my mom's not too mad; she really liked this picnic basket." The basket was still intact, but now covered in with every stain imaginable.

"Well, from what we DID actually eat, you can at least tell her that the food was delicious. Way better than having relish for dinner."

Nadine decided to take this as a compliment. "Thank you – I'm glad you enjoyed it!"

The two of them just stood for a bit, shifting their weight from foot to foot. Nadine held the picnic basket in both hands while the newly recuperated Wolfgang held the pair of crutches under one of his arms.

"Well…" said Nadine, looking at the ground. "I guess this is it. After today you go back to being a fifth grader, and I go back to being a fourth grader."

"Yup."

Nadine looked up, smiling timidly. "It sure has been an interesting week, hasn't it?"

"Totally. Well, Fourth Grader, it's been fun."

Wolfgang held out his hand. Nadine made one of her hands free and went for Wolfgang's but at the last second he moved it out of the way. "Psyche!" he said, then turned around and walked away laughing.

_Well, that's the end of that_, thought Nadine, who turned around and walked off in the opposite direction. Suddenly, she heard a loud whistle. Nadine turned and saw that it was Wolfgang who whistled, in an attempt to get her attention. From a distance, she couldn't see the expression on his face, but she could clearly see that he was waving at her. Nadine returned the wave, and the two children continued on their way.

"He likes me!" squealed Nadine, elated. "I knew it!" She felt as though she was floating on air. Her mind was totally consumed by thoughts of actually getting to know the real Wolfgang (or Rudy)…which was why she was totally unaware of the watching pair of eyes that would jeopardize everything.


	8. Chapter 8

Nadine was hard at work into Sunday night. She had locked herself in her room, dedicated to finish the project she had started. With a few supplies she had left over from Rhonda's fashion designer endeavours, she set to work until the early hours of the next day…

* * *

Monday morning was gloomy by comparison. It had rained the night before, and yet the sky was still overcast, an excellent metaphor for the children's attitudes towards returning to P.S. 118 after the long break.

A fully-healed Wolfgang strutted onto the grounds of P.S. 118 and headed towards a group of fifth-graders that were huddled together. "How's it going, losers? Your fearless leader has arrived. Did you miss me?"

Rather than the warm reception he was expecting, the fifth-graders merely stared at him in silence.

"What's the problem? I don't see you guys for one week, and this is how you welcome me back? What gives?"

"What gives is that you've decided to become a fourth-grader lover," said one of the fifth-graders. "You've gone soft."

"Impossible. Me, fraternizing with a fourth-grader? _Ha!_ Don't make me laugh."

"Edmund says he saw the two of you leaving City Park together. Laughing. Says he even saw you wave goodbye, like you were _good friends_."

Wolfgang turned to look at his traitorous best friend. "Dude, you can't be serious…why on Earth would I waste with a lower-classman?"

"I dunno," replied Edmund, feeling the heat of Wolfgang's stare and rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "But I'm sure that's what I saw…there she is right now!"

Edmund pointed to Nadine just as she entered the schoolgrounds through the fence.

"Come on, you guys – I'm still the same old Wolfgang! Who are you gonna believe, me or this shortsighted doofus?"

"Then prove it," said the original accusing fifth-grader.

Wolfgang turned to look at Nadine, then back at the group. He narrowed his eyes.

"All right, you bunch of clods. You want proof? I'll give you your proof…"

* * *

Nadine entered the playground holding a flat white box. She looked tired, but was all smiles as she past by Arnold.

"Good morning, Nadine," he said. "How was your Spring Break?"

"It was…interesting," replied Nadine.

"What's in the box? Another insect?"

"Not exactly…"

Just as Nadine was about to lift the lid, Wolfgang appeared behind her.

"Hey," he said. "Whatcha got there?"

"Ohh, hi, Wolfgang! Actually, I was just about to show Arn—_hey!_"

Wolfgang yanked the box from Nadine's grasp and lifted it high above her head. He laughed as jumped and tried to reach it, but to no avail.

"Come on, Wolfgang," said Arnold. "Quit being a jerk! Give Nadine back her box!"

But Wolfgang ignored Arnold and tossed the box to a fifth-grader wearing a beanie. When Nadine went to follow the box, the boy in the beanie tossed to it a lanky fifth-grader with curly red hair. These two played a game of Monkey in the Middle for a while before one of the boys tossed it to Edmund, who subsequently tossed it back to Wolfgang.

"Please give it back!" pleaded Nadine who was now coming towards Wolfgang.

All eyes were on Wolfgang. Fourth-graders and fifth-graders alike were watching to see what his next move would be.

Just a few feet from him, Nadine began to stumble. He was close enough to catch her and break her fall, and almost motioned to do as such, but at the last second sidestepped around her and let her fall into a nearby puddle.

"You snooze you lose, fourth-grader!" Wolfgang heard himself say.

The fifth-graders cheered while the fourth-graders who witnessed the debacle stared, horrified. All except one.

"Nadine!" Rhonda, who had just entered the playground, saw the whole thing and immediately followed after her best friend, who stood up and ran towards the school crying.

His title as "Terror to All Fourth-Graders" secured once again, Wolfgang proudly ripped the lid off the box so that he could claim the spoils.

And at that moment, he felt like the biggest schmuck in the world.

"What's in the box, Wolfgang?" asked the boy in the beanie.

Wolfgang turned to look at him, masking his guilt with a cool demeanor. "Nothing," he lied. "Just some stupid bugs."

The school bell rang and the rest of the students made their way inside. Wolfgang trailed behind, the shame of what he had done getting worse with every passing second.

For the first time in his life, Wolfgang _hated_ being a fifth-grader.


	9. Chapter 9

The limo pulled up in front of the Lloyd household. Rhonda exited the vehicle, and was surprised to find Wolfgang standing on her front porch.

Rhonda scoffed in disgust. "You've got _some_ nerve…"

"Hey, you're friends with that Bug Girl, right?"

"Hmph!" Rhonda completely shunned Wolfgang and attempted to walk past him to the entrance of her home.

"Wait a second! I'm not done talking to you!"

Wolfgang put a hand on Rhonda's shoulder, and when he did, Rhonda turned around and slapped Wolfgang unexpectedly across the face.

"_OW! Geez…"_

"That was for Nadine, because I know she's too nice to ever do it herself. For your information, I just spent the entire afternoon comforting the poor girl because YOU broke her heart! The only thing worse than my best friend falling for a geek is that she would fall for a bully. And that's what you are, Wolfgang. You're nothing but a big, fat bully, and you don't DESERVE Nadine!"

Rhonda slammed the door in Wolfgang's face.

"….You're right," Wolfgang admitted to the door.

The door slowly opened, ever so slightly. Rhonda's eye could barely be seen through the slit.

"What did you say?"

"I said you were right," Wolfgang repeated.

"No, no – I heard you the first time, I just – wow….I don't think I've _ever_ heard you agree with a fourth-grader before."

"I feel really bad about what happened today. I know she won't want to hear it from me, but I figured since you're her best friend, maybe you could relay the message to her that I'm…ya know…."

Rhonda's eyes narrowed. "You're serious about this?"

Wolfgang nodded.

Rhonda thought for a moment. She then opened the door wider. "In that case, get inside before I change my mind. We've got a lot of work to do."

* * *

"Come on, Rhonda – where are you taking me?"

It was early evening. Rhonda was a girl on a mission, practically dragging an exasperated Nadine by the hand through an unfamiliar section of the City Park.

"Patience, Nadine," said Rhonda in a singsong voice. "Goodness, you're even more impatient than when I'm trying on clothes at the mall."

"I don't see why this is so important. I was right in the middle of observing the mating habits of the Madagascar hissing cockroaches firsthand!"

"Trust me, Nadine. I think you'll find this experience a lot more stimulating…"

At last Rhonda stopped in a large clearing bordering a small pond. She let go of the perplexed Nadine's hand. "Okay…now I want you to close your eyes, and count backwards from 30."

Nadine sighed, but complied. "All right – 30, 29, 28, 27, 26…"

As Nadine counted backwards from 30, Rhonda quietly slipped away from the area. Nadine, who had her eyes closed, was completely unaware of her friend's departure.

"…5, 4, 3, 2, 1…okay, Rhonda, now what? Rhonda?" Nadine opened her eyes and looked around to see that Rhonda had vanished. "Rhonda, where did you…oh, my…"

Only when Nadine looked in front of her did she see what she was meant to see: hovering just above the water, hundreds upon hundreds of fireflies danced and flickered, illuminating the dusk with their soft, ethereal glow. Needless to say, Nadine was simply mesmerized.

"Oh, Rhonda…" she gasped. "This is amazing. How on Earth did you find this…?

"She didn't."

Nadine turned around. Wolfgang emerged from his hiding place in the bushes, his arms positioned firmly behind his back. "Hey." As Wolfgang took a few steps towards her, Nadine took a step back, her expression displaying first confusion, then suspicion.

"What are you doing here?"

Wolfgang gave Nadine a lopsided grin. "I never got to thank you for your present…"

Wolfgang brought his arms in front of him, so that both his fists were extended outward in front of his body. "Pick one."

Nadine simply stared at Wolfgang. After a moment of awkwardness, he opened his right palm, revealing the contents of the white box from earlier that morning.

It was a handmade necklace, decorated with beads, flowers, and small clay butterflies, meticulously painted so the details shone prominently on every individual wing. Wolfgang put the necklace on and looked at Nadine imploringly. "Ta-da."

Nadine was not impressed.

Wolfgang's smile faltered, and he sighed in annoyance. "Okay, so things didn't go so hot today at school. What did you expect? I have…"

"A reputation, I know," Nadine replied, in disgust. "Is that why you brought me out here? To lecture me on the whole fourth-grade, fifth-grade social order again? Because if that's the case, save your breath."

"No…" Wolfgang said patiently, but it was apparent he was about to lose his cool. "I brought you out here to…"

Wolfgang paused. He cleared his throat.

Nadine blinked. "To what?"

"What I mean to say is…I brought you out here…to say…I'm _SRGHFMNER_…." Wolfgang "sneezed" into his hand, then looked at Nadine expectantly, hoping she understood, but she just looked at him like he had lost his mind.

Finally Wolfgang lost his temper. "_Grr_…you're not making this easy for me, you know!"

"I'm going home now," she said, and turned and walked away.

"No…stop! _ARGH_!" Wolfgang punched a tree in his frustration. "How can I make her understand…?"

He looked up at a nearby lamppost and saw that its light source was already bombarded by moths. This gave him an idea, but Nadine was almost out of earshot. He had to get her attention.

"Hey…hey…**NADINE, WAIT**!"

Nadine stopped. In all the time they had spent together, Wolfgang had never referred to her by her actual name. After standing in place for a few seconds, she finally relented and walked back to him, but she crossed her arms in defiance when she got there.

"What is it?"

Wolfgang held one digit out, then bent over and picked up a good-sized rock from the ground. He then chucked the rock at the lamppost in order to startle the moths and to get them to flutter around the light source. He motioned to Nadine as if he were concluding a point.

Nadine looked at Wolfgang, then back at the moths, then back at Wolfgang; she was more bewildered than ever. "Wolfgang, I don't underst—"

"Remember when you told me all that stuff about butterflies?" he interjected. "How you were the cocoon, and by the end of the week you were going to turn me from what I am now, to this?" he brandished the jewelry around his neck. "Well…the thing is…I'm _not_ a butterfly. I'm never going to _be_ a butterfly. If anything, I'm more like those things – " he gestured to the moths, "I'm not pretty or dainty or graceful…I'm dull…and I'm bulky…and I wind up making a mess of things more than anything else.

"But…despite all of that…I'm not bad…I'm just misunderstood. And given a chance…like those moths…I can be drawn towards light."

He took a step towards Nadine. "This past week…you've been my light. I can't explain it…I can't help it…but for some reason…I'm drawn to you. I just hope you don't shut me out."

Nadine's eyes softened. "Wolfgang…"

Wolfgang took another step towards her, resting his forehead on hers.

"_I'm so sorry, Nadine. I've been such a jerk. Please forgive me."_

Nadine blushed. For a while, neither one of them made a move. Then Nadine lifted her head and leaned in closer to Wolfgang. Wolfgang followed in kind and leaned in closer to Nadine. Just when their faces were mere inches apart…Nadine pulled away as she lifted the necklace up over Wolfgang's head.

"What are you doing?"

"Uh…this doesn't belong to you."

"Doesn't belong to me? What are you talking about? I saw this in the box - it had my name on it and everything!"

Nadine shook her head and smiled. "You think I would actually make a sparkly butterfly necklace for a fifth-grade boy? It was meant for you sister. I was hoping you could give it to her the next time you see her."

"Oh," Wolfgang rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I guess that makes sense. I should've known that…."

"What? Did you want me to make one for you, too?"

"What? N-no. of course not!"

Nadine giggled. "Relax. I was only joking….but if you're not, just let me know. I just have to get the extra material from Rhonda."

Wolfgang pressed his forehead against Nadine's once more and smirked. "I'll think about it. In the meantime, I think it's only fair that the artist presents her work in person to the receptive party. Say…this Saturday?"

"It's a date."

The two turned to look at the hundreds of fireflies illuminating the night sky. Nadine's eyes widened as she took in the sights. "Look at it - isn't it magnificent?"

Wolfgang glanced over at the awestruck Nadine and smiled. "Yeah. Totally."

Meanwhile, Rhonda watched the whole thing unfold several yards away from her hiding spot. She dabbed a tissue on her damp eyes and sighed wistfully.

"How romantic," she swooned. "I just love a happy ending…"

* * *

_Special Thanks to HigherSilver for the beta-read!_


	10. Chapter 10 - Epilogue

"Faster, Roo, faster!"

Wolfgang ran down the hill, carrying his little sister on shoulders. She laughed in glee as the wind whipped through her messy blonde curls, causing the butterfly necklace to dance in the air behind her. When they got to the bottom of the hill, Wolfgang lifted her high above his head and ran about in circles; his sister stretched her arms out from her side and mimicked an airplane, making sound effects.

When they were done with that game, Wolfgang took his sister and threw her up in the air a few times. After the last toss-up, Wolfgang snuggled his sister close to her body and ruffled his hand through her hair, causing her to giggle uncontrollably.

Nadine stood at a distance, setting up their picnic on the blanket she had laid out. She caught Wolfgang's eye and both he and his sister waved at her. Nadine smiled and waved back.

She thought about it often. A fourth-grader and fifth-grader. Friends. Possibly more than friends. Rhonda took it surprisingly well, but what about everyone else? Given their history, how would everyone react to her being involved with the biggest tyrant at P.S. 118?

Wolfgang's sister pointed to the laid-out picnic, and he nodded in compliance. He set his sister in the nearby wheelchair and rolled her over to where Nadine was now sitting.

_Now's not the time for that_, thought Nadine. _Let's just enjoy this moment._

* * *

After their lunch, the three of them splayed out on the grass and watched as the clouds sailed by.

"Lookit, Roo," pointed Wolfgang's sister enthusiastically. "A bunny rabbit!"

"Good one!" responded Wolfgang. "I see…a fire engine."

"And what do you see, Nadee?" his sister asked.

"Two scarab beetles fighting over a mound of dung."

"_Ewwwwwww!"_ cried the sister, tapering off into a fit of giggles.

"What?" said Nadine when she saw Wolfgang staring at her, but he just shook his head and smiled. As he laid back on the grass, he casually linked his hand with hers.

"You certainly are a strange one, Fourth Grader."

**THE END**

* * *

___Special Thanks to HigherSilver for the beta-read!_


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